


Vault 88

by SensitiveDahmer



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse), Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Blood and Violence, Bottom Leon S. Kennedy, Castiel and Dean Winchester Need to Use Their Words, Crossover, Eventual Smut, Help, How Do I Tag, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Plotbunnies, Slow Romance, Tags Are Hard, Tags May Change, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, To Be Continued, To Be Edited, Weird Plot Shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:54:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27987282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SensitiveDahmer/pseuds/SensitiveDahmer
Summary: After a vault break in, its madness in post sole survivor commonwealth. Leon, is taken from his pseudo safety by- you guessed it- Super mutants.In the nick of time hes saved by a wastelander, will they ir wont they all over the place!!!Mucho plot~
Relationships: Jack Krauser/Original Character(s), Leon S. Kennedy/Jack Krauser
Comments: 3
Kudos: 2





	Vault 88

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first story posted on here. I may add older stories and ofc new works but yea-  
> Enjoy

-

Leon awoke to a buzzing silence, the kind of silence that awoke a vault dweller whom was used to the constant jive outside the small room each blue suit was allotted.  
The lack for sunlight made days last for what seemed like hours and the time to sleep dragged on with the core silenced above. The hum of the nuclear machine a floor below the dweller dorms was the loudest. But even today as Leon sat in his small bed in the corner of a windowed room filled with small personal items and books, he couldn't pick out the Atomic hum that he'd lived with his entire life.  
This bothered him to the depth of his stomach as the lights were already out and the metal walls hung darker than ever in what started feeling like an underground prison.  
Leon sat up and rubbed his face and hand through his hair trying to shake this feeling from his mind.  
Swinging his feet over the edge of the bed, he grabbed his blue vault suit from the chair beside his nightstand and flicked on the lamp switch to a sickening 'thunk!' That led to no illumination.  
Leon sighed shakily.  
In the whole time within Vault 88, he'd known it to be reliable and safe from an overseer.  
The lights not turning on wasn't something that was normal at all given the place was set up by an actual old world vault dweller. He was taken here from good neighbor as a 6 year old. She'd set this place up to last for at least 100 years.

Leon dressed quickly while thinking and grabbed his shoes and socks hurrying to get them on and tie his shoes.  
He stood and carefully walked to his door which didnt slide open like normal. He began panicking. How was he going to get out. His heart thumped loudly in his ears, eyes darting around as he looked through the windows. He saw a flash that resounded in a ringing blast that caused Leon to duck from the flash. His pip-boy ticked off, rads rising.  
"Oh god..." His lips whispered as deep voices flooded the corridor. He knew he was dead. He knew it but the feet pounded past.  
"Where are they?? He said they here."  
Another lighter voice-  
"saw blue meat walk in yesterday, they must be here"  
A grunt at a door a few down from Leon's, a large bang rang out again and  
He heard a loud scream from the room and then a muffing as they tied him up. The footsteps left. And the air hung stiff.  
They must've cut the power. Leon thought.  
He moved to his locker pulling out a baseball bat and he looked at the strength of the glass. It couldn't be stronger than the bat.

45 minutes of straight smacks. One after another. Leons arms shook with pain. The large front door to the vault opened again. The gruff and deep voices were in mid conversation.  
"So have you heard of legend of black mountain and Tabitha."  
"No, is it tasty trapped humans mountain?" The super mutant joked woth the other.  
Hearty growling laughs.  
The foot steps caused unrest as dwellers well awake were taken aback by their return.  
"No no no. Funny that is. But not story of Tabitha, she is the owner of a sanctuary for us"  
"Wait. No kid from you!!?"  
"Yes a place to be free to crush human scum into a soup"  
"You speak of wonderful time"  
There was another blast two doors down- screaming- then it being muffled.  
Leon puked next to his door from anxiety.  
He knew his was next. They were coming in and one by one taking vault dwellers.  
Leon smashed the window without care if they were right outside. Met with amused toothy stares the mutants waved and walked out.  
Leon dropped the bat stepping back in horror, he scrambled to his feet and looked around his room again feeling the walls blindly. A new idea of escape crossed his mind. He absently ran across the room and yelled for anyone else,  
Cries and replys.  
"Dont worry im going to get us out!"  
His fingernails painfully snagged a vent duct and he ran back across and grabbed a screwdriver, running back and fumbling in the dark to unscrew the vent duct.  
He dropped the screwdriver in the panic, kneeling and looking down feeling blindly for the screwdriver.  
The doors rattled again. The cried and hollers from other rooms fell silent while Leon crawled around try desperately to find the driver.  
A quiet grunt sounded through the door. Leons head snapped looking up and behind him tilting his body.  
The burst rang through his ears loudly reverberating- his fingers felt the dirt and dust pepper them and he felt around for the bat hands grasping it tightly as he breathed shallow.  
The hulking mutants stepped in and laughed grabbing at Leon who fell backwards to avoid the thick fingers. He stood up and readied to swing when on grabbed him by the jaw.  
Leon sneered at the monster swinging the best he could, connecting with it face tar like blood spattering Leons face as he struggled against the grip of the creature.  
It spat to its side and laughed licking its bumpy slimy tounge along Leons cheek,  
"Mmm-fear and sweat is a seasoning i wish all stinking fucking humans had" this mutant spoke better than the rest eyes glowing sickly in the dark  
Noise dulled to the geiger tick methodically from Leon's wrist.  
"What is this? Human with nothing to say?"  
"Put me down. Ill go quietly..." Leon dropped the bat and grabbed the mutants arm pulling at the tightening grip.  
"You act like you have a choice." He chuckled under his rotten breath.  
He slammed Leons head against the ceiling, Leon's eyes fluttering closed and he fell limp.  
-

Leon awoke again. Restless sleep and groggy vision waved away as he saw he was suspended. Loud laughing surrounded him and he tried to wipe his face, unable to lift his arms. He felt the sweat and heat as he was naked. The shame was lost in fear, his body streaked with blood and cut squares of flesh from His legs bled slowly. He felt sick and weightless tied up from a large pulley system.

"Well! Look friends of mine! the fiesty one the best to dip!!??" The largest mutant asked.  
Laughter roared in response.

Leon stayed quiet straining against the ropes looking for any hope for escape.  
He felt the vertigo of the pulley being activated, pulling him up before lowering him as it squealed with metal on metal. He looked down, head feeling heavy.

The boiling green liquid fumed underneath him, the heat making him sweat more and he wiggled more hurriedly. He strained against the restraints and pulled until he felt lightheaded. The pay off- his arm popped and he let out a sickeningly deep choked scream. The mutants laughed harder at the struggling and even more so as his arm, dislocated, was free.  
Leon heaved pulling the other free, the heat unbearable Leon tried to hold himself up back and stomach already weak.  
He fell back and screamed as his arm dangled and dipped into the thick bubbling liquid. The adrenaline surged and he lifted his arm out and sat up holding onto the feet restraints desperately.

He didnt notice the explosions or the mutants scatter and growl. He didnt notice the pulley stop. He only felt the close pop of the vat underneath him.  
Then the vertigo of being pulled up on the pulley, he breathed a heavy sigh as he relaxed his grip a bit as the lift pulled him back up to the high scaffold.  
He felt hands on his ankles pulling him close and into leather clad arms, some studs poking his bare sweaty skin.  
The ropes undone, he was pulled onto the metal floor.  
Leon lost consciousness immediately. The person shuffled in his hip bag, stabbing leon with a stimpack, jolting him awake.  
He groaned and coughed hard. The man forced him to lay flat, knee pinning his chest down.  
"Hey!!- stop!!" Leon choked  
"St- get off!"  
The man looked down at him making eye contact. Leon stopped struggling eyes shifting to his other hand- holding a large syringe filled with a milky liquid.  
"Its just rad-x" the man said, leon able to make out light blonde hair and ice blue eyes.  
He looked at the man trying to make out features but didnt have much reprieve as he plunged the needle into Leon's chest near the other hole from the stimpack.  
He could only remember being wrapped up tightly in a fuzzy blanket and being carried and then the bumpy ride, vision fading in and out.  
He smelled brahmin, and he heard a healthy fire. He faded back out.

Leon awoke in a bed. A warm change. The fuzzy blanket still wrapped snugly around his nakedness. He sat up, a different blanket fell from his chest and he yawned, and was startled by his arm. Charred and red with scars and scabs. It had been a long time to heal, the wounds and dead flesh still raw and weak. He felt the pain as examining the damage.  
"You're lucky to be alive."  
Leon's head snapped up to across the room.  
He sighed a breath of relief.  
"How much do i owe you?" He tried to stand and sat back, legs wobbling and numb.  
"Just answers and maybe some help…."  
Leon flashed a smile and noticed he was still bare fleshed.  
"First, do you have some clothes i can wear? I have a cap stash to pay you for them at least."  
The man threw leons own clothes at him.  
"Found em in the mutant stronghold. No need for caps. I got what many would call a bounty in a near by area. Some one who showed the mutants your vault. I need you to help me track down a man named nikki swift. Hes a bad fucking man. I needed a terminal repair holodisk from your vault. But i found it completely sealed…" The man continued and leon was feeling the thick droplet scabs on his chest.  
"When i came back i saw the slimy fucker escorting biff and dumbass to check out the vault security. I was captured myself and heard, after i tricked one of those melonheads to let me out, your screaming." He smiles a smirk  
"So i want your help."  
Leon listened patiently and was getting dressed in his dirty vault suit.  
"That is grosser than i thought it was. Here…"  
He got up and walked into another room and he came back with old jeans and a flannel shirt.  
"These should fit.. May be a bit big though."  
He sat back down after setting them beside Leon.  
Leon shed the vault suit readily, baggy clothes hang off of his shoulders. He stopped at his arm.  
The flesh looked like a gnarled root and it still was in pain. He sighed.  
"What did they do to me?"  
"Dipping.." Jack said somberly. He looked down.  
"They thought you'd make a great mutant. Turns out you woulda just burned. Dissolved away.." He muttered.  
Leon looked at it again, he searched for a reason why he'd be a good mutant. He was suddenly angry and he stepped up to jack who was sitting there cleaning a gun.  
"Lets go now."  
Jack stopped and put down his cleaning box.  
"Excuse me?"  
Jack scoffed.  
"You are not going now. Too bad for revenge or what ever the fuck you think you want. But Leon, you cant take on 1. How are you gonna kill a small army?"

Leon grabbed a gun hanging off of the wall and stepped out angrily. Jack snapped up dropping the gun parts and went after him. Leon opened the front door and jack made it to him, the hulking figure slammed it shut and held it closed. He trapt leon with his other arm.  
"You cant go alone. You'll die. I was just starting to like you." Jack huffed like he was fatuged. Leon stood still, daring Jack to let the door go.  
And he did to Leon's suprise.  
Leon stood confused.  
"Why? I don't want caps or the scrap. I just want to kill the one who captured me. I'm going to walk out that door with this gun and find him."  
Jack sighed and slowly moved back to the room and grumbled to himself.  
Leon stood silent and swallowed his nerves cracking open the door.  
He peered out of it seeing rotting beasts walking about.  
Flesh torn head to toe, raspy gutted voices. Ghouls.  
He gulped and swung the gun strap around his back and opened it fully, trying to nonchalantly walk out.  
Eyes on him.  
Men and women ghouls staring at him.  
"Smoothskin…"  
"Ahhh, look how frightened he is!"  
"Wait till he meets Desi."  
Evil sounding chuckles follow more jeers and taunts.  
He parted the crowd, finding himself face to face with a tall bulky ghoul.  
He pushed leon into the mud that they trot in.  
"Who are you? Tight face? Bright eyes? Pale baby fresh skin" he smelled Leon's chest.  
"Edible. But injured. I wonder how broken his little wing is" he said. Pulling at leons shirt and arm.  
Leon tried to walk past the touchy ghoul and was grabbed by the crowd who started kicking nd punching him.  
They scratched and bit and gnashed with spit falling in a mob mentally. Leon tried to crawl away from them only to be stomped further in the mud.  
"Hey! Assholes! That's my… slave!"  
Jack ran from out of his house and to leon pulling him up.  
"How dare you leave?!" Jack continued looking down at leon. Leon pushed away from him as Jack took him into his arms.  
"Hes for private business Desi." He turned and shot an explanation at the tall ghoul who sneered.  
"Why you gotta ruin the fun! I wasn't gonna…"  
"Save it. Im returning this piece of shit for trying to escape. I paid top dollar. What a fucking waste." Jack said dragging leon back and into his house.  
The ghouls argue over the missed chances and carry on. Desi walks defiantly to jacks shack and slips inside.  
"-i had to you gotta understand"  
"Understand what?" Desi asked, interrupting jack.  
"That imma shoot his feet if he cant learn to deal with it. Escaping is unacceptable." Jack said.  
"Want some beer, Desi?"  
He nodded, scratching his mangled head.  
"Never told me you went ahead and got one. " Desi said, sitting at the table in the kitchen where jack had taken leon.  
Leon was drenched in mud, bloody nose, and black eye.  
He coughed and spat.  
Desi looked expectantly at Jack who conceded for ease if escape.  
He stepped over handing Desi his beer and slapped Leon hard.  
Leon spat again.  
He looked up at jack with hate.  
Jack knew Desi was going to take him, do god knows what if he couldn't sell this.  
Jack leaned down and grabbed leons jaw and said quietly but loud enough for Desi  
"Spit one more time whore."  
He threatened and leon sighed quietly and jack let him go.  
"Feisty huh? How much? I've been wanting a slave for some time now. Can you fuck it? Does he do dishes too? God if they did the dishes, id pay 3000 caps alone." Desi laughed and so did jack.  
"2000"  
"Really now?" Desi asked as Jack sat across him with his own beer.  
"Hes vault fresh, and for 2000. A steal." He chuckled looking leon up and down. Leon refused to move.  
"Bought him from melonheads, yknow they aren't heavy on the pricing."  
"No shit. You gotta let me try him."  
"No."  
"Wrong. I own this town. And everything in it. Come on, why not?".  
"Not till I've gotten him. Hes not trained well. As you said vault fresh." Jack said.  
Desi mouthed it with him nodding slowly.  
"I pay your salary. I gave you this house. I bought him. Let me break him in. Hell stop with the misbehaving for sure."  
Leon wanted to puke.  
Jack grabbed his beer and looked leon over. Shaking his head.  
"Tsk… watch out. A new smoothskin needs a soft touch from Desi.. They always stay once I've broken them. Any ways. " Desi got up, beer empty.  
He stood over to leon looking down at him.  
"Mmm. You let me know krauser." He said threatening. He walked slowly out of Jack house.  
Jack put his head down on the table. And sighed.  
"Holy god damn… that was really close Leon."  
He was standing above jack now who looked up.  
Leon slapped him hard and stinging.  
"I do… deserve that." He muttered.  
But he would have tortured you. The Smoothskins like us that he keeps die very quickly. "  
Leon scoffed.  
"Let me come with you, i need Justice. And you need the holodisk. Im from 88. I know where it is."  
Jack smirked.  
"Alright smoothskin"  
Leon sighed.  
"I am grungy again." He said with a heavy sigh.  
"I know. Im sorry for hitting you and draggin you in the mud and calling you a whore."  
Jack said, drinking some more of his beer.  
Leon huffed.  
"Its fine."  
He laughed.  
"And im not a whore."  
"I know" jack smiled "go shower and go to my cabinet and wear whatever we gotta go before nightfall

0o0o0o0o0

Jack closed his door quietly and looked around. The ghouls were all listening to diamond city radio in a crowd listening to a song all singing out of breath and tune.  
Desi is nowhere sight.  
Jack walks away nonchalantly and leon follows wearing a coat and a brahmin leather outfit.  
Jack looked back to see all the ghouls very intrigued in their music and drink and Jack quietly opened the metal scrap door.  
Leon hurried through and waited for jack on the other side.  
Jack slipped through and closed the door carefully and turned to see Leon just a bit down the path, he stepped carefully over to him and they walked silently together for a few minutes. Leon stopped.  
"Jack… do you hear that?"  
Jack stopped a bit ahead and shifted weight glancing around.  
"Wha-?" A loud pistol discharge from behind them.  
Jack grabbed leons hand and pushed him to the side of the path and steadys leons hands on the rock.  
Leon looked shocked and froze as more gunshots rang out followed but jeering and laughter.  
It was the ghouls.  
Leon looked at the mosh then at jack who nodded and pushed leon down the rock face.  
He immediately turned to fire back.  
Leon tumbled down and fell on his back hard, the air knocked out of him. He huffed in pain and scrambled to his feet hopping over other rocks down the cliff side running as fast as he could.  
He had to try to get to the vault even if jack couldn't make it. He heard gunshots and yelling and he ducked into a shack of another path. He held against the wall hard and heaved breath in his chest.  
He soon heard footsteps.  
"Look harder!" And gruff voice said.  
Shuffling and leon trembled.  
He heard stories of the wastes from people who moved into the vault and his parents but was lucky enough to know nothing of it firsthand.  
The steps drew closer and stopped just before leon in the dark, looming over him.  
Leon froze and closed his eyes, holding his breath. The cloaked figure rose his arm straight above, casting a shadow over leon.  
BANG!! BANG!  
loud shots echoed through the hills the footsteps stopping from all over.  
Jack pulled the hood off and grabbed leons shoulders.  
"Why'd you just take off?" He said worried and angrily shouting at leon.  
Leon pushed him away and stumbled to run away, now that a moment actually alone befell him.  
Jack caught his arm and yanked him back and he held him in place nose to nose with him.  
They shared and intense moment where they both relaxed.  
"I dont know you.. Those ghouls trying to kill us, are your friends! You live there!"  
Jack let him go and let leon run off.

o0o0o0o0o

Leon sat at the edge of a red rocket stop outside of concord. He sighed; sanctuary hills right ahead, he stared off at the town cresting over the edge of the asphalt horizon. He was alone for the past 4 days. No food. And very little water. He remembered that jack said he needed a terminal repair holodisk and after finding his way through a terminal he stumbled across, he found a good chance there was one in vault 111.  
So here he was.  
He didnt know why he was tracking the terminal repair holodisk and why.  
Part of him felt like he owed it to jack. But part of him also felt like he'd never see him again.  
And there he sat- conflicted.

He watched all day and when the sun went down he went into the garage and sat on a mattress that he found that was semi clean. He sighed again and looked at his last half empty box of sugar bombs. Leon remembered that night he ran. He ran far and quick and was happy for a little while. But he found himself lost in the middle of boston. Found out jack lived in a place near murder pass. A gang held out in the cleared out path way that used to be overridden with ferals. Leon wondered alot if jack went back.. Could he after shooting them. And if he really was like them… he wouldn't have shot at all.  
He didnt know what to think.  
How the hell would he find jack again?  
Leon layed back and before he knew it it was morning and his stomach gnarled into a knot.  
He stood and stretched looking at his pipboy.  
It was 8 am.  
"Early.. Hm.." He walked into the office portion of the red rocket stop.  
He crouches when he saw a caravan with ghouls.  
He didnt want to run into anything. They were leaving sanctuary hills talking among themselves.  
"So what a deal on that jet!"  
"Y'know the nuances of chems must've been lost on older ghouls."  
"Oh hush, im 175 years old. And all the ghouls knew to waste their immortal hell on chems.. Duh."  
They three laughed and walked on.  
Leon breathed slowly and went out the back door and vaulted off of the hill crest over the little mole rat hole. He was tripped by something- and fell hard again onto the dusty ground.  
A mole rat! Big and vicious and gnawing at the brahmin hide around his calf.  
He kicked and kicked. He hesitated to yelp and call for help, but without a weapon he was as good as fucking dead.  
The three ghouls run up.  
"Oh my god! Shoot it!"  
And one aims its hunting rifle and takes a long pause.  
The mole rat sinks its teeth into his leg and blood gushes out. And leon yells at them to shoot now, and then the mole rats dead. They help leon to his feet.  
"Come on." The shooter says and hoists leon up onto the brahmin and they run off back to sanctuary hills.  
Leon gulped feeling clammy and he knew he was losing alot of blood. As they got into town he heard women scream and children billow terrified.  
They brought him to the central hub at the heart of the settlement.  
He fell in and out of consciousness.

He awoke hours later. The sun blaring into his face. He sat up and felt the thick bandages on his leg.  
"Whoa whoa! You already gave us a fright. Calm down." He felt a thick skinned hand push him back and put a pillow underneath his injured leg.  
"Fuck…" leon groaned pain thronning through his body.  
"Fuck indeed. How did you come from anywhere with no weapon??" The ghoul asked.  
He had no skin left on his face, just bright 00 muscles underneath and his eyes were yellow with jaundice and radiation cardiovascular decay.  
Leon smelled the rotting off of him but it was easy to get over.  
"What are you vault fresh??" He asked.  
Leon didnt reply, just nodded.  
"Oh wow. Well… shit welcome to the wasteland?"  
He shook leons hand and stood up.  
"You cannot leave town on that. But! I heard of the nearby vault having stimpacks in the overseers office. Its just up the hill there off the path on the way out of town. You can make it on your leg."  
He put a bag strap over his head and reached for the door out.  
"Here.. It can help you." He turned back and gave leon a knife.  
" by the way my names Seth."  
"Leon."  
Seth nodded and went for the door again. And paused  
"Come see me when your better. I live in good neighbor just past diamond city."  
Seth left quickly.  
And leon watched him rear the brahmin and walk away.  
Other people walked by the windows.  
Leon watched the window as the days bled together until he could stand. Seth came back once or twice. Brought leon publick occurrences and other news from the capital wasteland to the south down in Virginia.  
"You travel alot.." Leon said as he sipped the radroach broth.  
"Yea. Its good money to be made. Once that gets better-" seth spooned some meat into his mouth, troublesome for his lips have rotten away.  
Leon didn't stare. He was raised with some ghouls in the vault, some had gone feral at times but they were good folk.  
Leon set his cup down, looking again outside the window of the yellow house.  
"Leon…?"  
Seth set his down too.  
"Why are you always staring out the window?"  
Leon snapped back to look at Seth. Muttering a cheap "im not sure"  
Seth laughed.  
"A bird out in the wastes, eh?"  
Leon shook his head.  
"I lived in a vault as you know, and it was broken into by super mutants. This person saved me. And i think he gave up his entire situation to help me…"  
Seth laughed.  
"So you ran. Thats normal. He might've wanted to just sell you off or something."  
Seth tapped leons shoulder.  
"No man, he needed to get into my vault and i needed to check on my home.. And i ran." Leon said rubbing the bridge of his nose and sighing again.  
"I ran first chance i got. And he already saved me twice. The muties were gonna dip me.."  
"Mmm that makes sense for your arm then."  
Seth looked down at his mug of soup.  
"I lost a woman i considered to be my daughter to them. They ambushed us and she… her skin was smooth. they took no note of me and she was dipped.. I have regretted not leaving her home too many nights."  
Leon patted seths shoulder.  
"This wasteland… you never know who youll be till your out and in it."  
Seth nodded and ate some more of his soup.  
"Did you ever trek into the vault up there to get the medicine?" He added.  
Leon shook his head and looked back out the window.  
The sun was falling beneath the trees and beaming up brightly painting the skies like watercolor with pinks and blues.  
"I.. I was planning on going in a few days." Leon laughed.  
"I just gotta snag me a stick and ill be good to kill nothing much more than a radroach."  
Seth laughed and got up, reached into his large traveling pack and pulled out a 10mm pistol and a small box rattling with 10mm shells.  
He placed them in front of Leon and went back to his soup.  
"Found it. I have a hunting rifle for myself. Gotta find .32 shells soon 'cause Im running out and i really dont need another."  
Leon looked at it and nodded.  
"Thank you, seth. For this and everything." Leon gave him a warm look and went back to his radroach soup.  
"So… this raider. Is he a ghoul too? Cause if he ruined his standing with the raiders i know a place he could go. Its a few states away but… its safe for ghouls." Seth asked finishing his soup and standing to go behind a half wall behind leon and the table. He used the dirty water in the water bottles to rinse out the mug and rummaged around in his pack a few feet away to wipe down the mug and replaced it on the kitchen counter. He looked up at the busted and rusted fridge. *or what was a kitchen* seth thought.  
Leon took his time to answer.  
"He wasn't. But hes good friends with some that may need a safe place. I mean im sure that if he saved me hes not all bad and so all his friends couldn't possibly just be a pool of raiders." Leon gulped down and waited playing with his spoon.  
Seth simply shrugged.  
"Youd have to see huh? I hope you get a chance to thank this guy." Seth pulled out a pack of cards and delt out a small game of caravan with Leon.  
Leon shifted and stood. His leg bandaged and splinted, he hoisted himself up and held the mug with his charred hand and limped to follow Seth's suit and cleaned his cup.  
"Whats this?" Leon asked.  
"Imma teach you the best game in the wasteland!" Seth smiled a rotten and toothy grin.

0o0o0o0o0o0o

Jack had been wandering as wanders do. 3 days since that vault kid ran off.  
He was certain covenant could help. Considering they track the caravans. Jack knew this because of a rumor about them hunting or.. Something with synths. Jack didn't make much of this business his business. He was a hired gun. He didnt much care beyond the day to day grind. Then this stupid fucking merc Mr. Nick swift or Nikki swift. Jack needed to get that holodisk; it repaired a terminal in the Hallucinogen building in Boston. That terminal is mr. Swifts terminal. It has his target list, his report logs, and the address of his employer.  
Jack had been hunting his a long while for killing almost all of his hometown. Jack was a seasoned wastelander, born at the NCR Headquarters, and was raised by a father who saved the town on multiple occasions from a albino deathclaw.  
He sat down on a rock.  
He thought of all this as he opened a.can of cram. The telltale metallic smell from the radiation of old old food drifted up and into his nose.  
Jack had found nothing on his way to hunt, so two fingers in the soft meat, and down the hatch. He munched and munched and looked out over the morning light. The cliffs and rocks led down to a river that was green and murky but glistened like diamonds in the morning light. Jack chewed and sighed.  
He wished to find that vault kid. He wanted to help him, and he couldn't go back to Desi. Hed shoot on sight, jack knew it and he killed at least 12 of his lot anyways. He wouldn't be welcome back.  
Jack adjusted his gun strap from across his back and unceremoniously finished the cram.  
He stood and looked in the distance behind him. A large stone compound with turrets on each corner and barbed wire.  
The People who knew the People who used to live here, moved in and continued to goat synthe tests.  
Somebody killed them and they are now a big trade town. He sat up and stood and walked down the road.

"Hey deezer, hold off on the edge! It will spill!" Jack said as the Mr handy dispensed a cup of surprisingly cold lemonade. He turned around to a cheery woman, Ellie.  
" 'ello Jack!" She nudged him.  
He nodded at her while drinking some of the refreshing drink.  
"Hey. Happy farming?" Jack asked.  
She and him began walking around the small five house camp that stood as an seemingly untouched testament to the life before the Nuclear holocaust.  
She shrugged and looked around before laughing brushing her red hair out of her eyes"  
"You know me. Dirty nails from the soil. Just trying to make a decent 'retirement'"  
Ellie said and stopped.  
She looked out the large doors across the far off lake green glittering underneath the ruin of the bridge.  
"What brings you here? Last i saw you weren't allowed to "raid" us for desi anymore." She gestured quotations.  
They'd made a circle and stood by deezer again.  
Jack sighed and took another drink of the lemonade smacking his lips at the pucker.  
She leads him into the large white house in the center of town. The cozy place, still messy and aged from the war, was comfy and settled. They sat at a table inside.  
"Im looking for a man. Nikki swift." Jack said.  
He put leon out of his mind. He was free without being debted to Desi and didnt wanna think about the helpless man.  
"Awe.. I know you Krauser…" She smiled slyly using his last name- something he told few for fear of his family in the capital wasteland a few states away.  
"Looking for a ghost."  
He narrowed his eyes at her and said;  
"What makes you so sure?" He let the seriousness wash over his face.  
She studied his expression.  
".....you've seen him…?" She breathed.  
"Ellie-"  
"You said you werent getting into trouble after buying this house with me." She softened.  
"You took the loan and disappeared after i moved in. But i got your letter that said youd try to be safe. Why do you have to chase monsters?"  
She continued as he shook his head at her pursing his lips.  
"Nikki swift is a cold blooded killer, jack. I know you wanna find her. But he doesnt take slaves and if he did his Mutant lackys would eat them."  
Jack glared at her.  
"She has no one else looking for her. Ellie im sorry i cannot sit by farming day to night and wasting my time." He sighed.  
The room grew quiet.  
The silence hung the nail of years history between the too, Ellie wanted him at one point, the best friends who escape a broken home and fall in love. But moving to the commonwealth turned jack krauser into who he is today. And who he is- is someone who wanted to trust no one.  
Ellie bit her lip.  
"I know it sounds harsh-"  
"Shes a 7 year old girl!" Jack argued and stood up to leave.  
"Wait-" ellie asked.  
Jack stopped.  
"Ask Vas Minister. Ive heard things from the shopkeeper. He says that Vas lives in sanctuary hills."  
He looked bitter.  
"Why didnt you-"  
She interrupted him.  
"I just want you to come home." She wanted to grab his hand.  
He sighed sad and leaned down to kiss her forehead. A loving and forlorn gesture that they both bathed in for a sweet silent second.  
He parted all to soon and she followed him as he walked slowly outside.  
"Sanctuary hills huh..?"  
He looked at her and smiled.  
"Be safe out there jack. I wish you'd visit more often." She looked down, he grabbed her hand.  
"I will. I promise. See you soon Ellie. Stay safe please." He smiled again and they parted for good this time. He walked out the doors armor and platinum hair glittering with the water in the distant and tumultuous sun. She folded her arms and walked back to her Tato crops.

O0o0o0oo0o0o0o0o


End file.
